Yusuf Gowon | |
|---|---|
| Uganda Army Chief of Staff | |
| In office June 1978 – March 1979 | |
| President | Idi Amin |
| Preceded by | Isaac Lumago |
| Succeeded by | Ali Fadhul |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Yusuf Mogi 1936 Ladonga, West Nile Province, Protectorate of Uganda |
| Died | (aged 85) Arua, Uganda |
| Nickname(s) | "Goan" "The tractor driver" "bad omen" "Snake" |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance |  Uganda |
| Branch/service | Uganda Army (UA) |
| Years of service | 1968–1979 |
| Rank | Major General |
| Battles/wars | |
Yusuf Gowon[a] (born Yusuf Mogi; 1936 – 2 February 2024) was a Ugandan military officer who served as chief of staff for the Uganda Army during the dictatorship of Idi Amin. Originally a farmer, Gowon quickly rose through the ranks of the military due to a combination of happenstance and his political skills. Compared with other high-ranking officials of Amin's regime, he was regarded as humane; nevertheless, he was probably involved in some political murders. His appointment as chief of staff was mostly owed to the fact that President Amin regarded him as loyal, not ambitious, and no threat to his own rule. Gowon's lack of talent for tactics and strategy came to the fore when the Uganda–Tanzania War broke out in 1978, and his leadership of the Uganda Army during this conflict was extensively criticised. Many of his comrades and subordinates even blamed him for Uganda's defeat in the conflict with Tanzania. When Amin's regime began collapsing in 1979 and his own soldiers intended to murder him, Gowon fled Uganda.
Gowon subsequently settled in Zaire as a businessman. Unlike many of his former comrades, Gowon did not join any insurgent group during his exile. When the new Ugandan government of Yoweri Museveni offered him to return to his home country in 1994, he accepted and founded a nonprofit organization to help ex-combatants find civilian jobs. He also became head of a veterans association. In 2001, Gowon was arrested and tried for the suspected involvement in the murder of Eliphaz Laki during Amin's rule. The trial generated much publicity and was controversial, as some regarded it as important chance to finally address the crimes of Amin's dictatorship, while others claimed that it was politically motivated. Gowon denied involvement in Laki's murder, and was acquitted due to lack of evidence in 2003.
- ^ Rwehururu 2002, p. 96.
- ^ Decalo 2019, The Collapse of a Dictator.
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